In February 2023, Vital announced an updated Mineral Resource Estimate for the Tardiff Upper Zone at Nechalacho (to 31 December 2022). Tardiff is estimated to contain:
- 1.67 million tonnes of TREO within a total mineral resource of 119.0Mt at 1.4% TREO, a 26% increase over the previous MRE (December 2019).
- 416,000 tonnes of neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr), a 19% increase over the previous MRE.
| Cut-off Grade % TREO | Category | Tonnage (Mt) | TREO Grade (%) | NdPr:TREO ratio | Nd2O3 (%) | Pr6O11 (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.8 | Inferred | 155.5 | 1.24 | 25.2% | 0.25 | 0.07 |
| 0.8 | Indicated | 8.9 | 1.29 | 24.8% | 0.25 | 0.07 |
| 0.8 | Measured | 5.9 | 1.43 | 24.6% | 0.28 | 0.08 |
| 0.8 | Total | 170.3 | 1.25 | 25.1% | 0.25 | 0.07 |
| 0.9 | Inferred | 130.8 | 1.31 | 25.2% | 0.26 | 0.07 |
| 0.9 | Indicated | 7.6 | 1.37 | 24.8% | 0.27 | 0.07 |
| 0.9 | Measured | 5.2 | 1.51 | 24.6% | 0.29 | 0.08 |
| 0.9 | Total | 143.6 | 1.32 | 25.1% | 0.26 | 0.07 |
| 1.0 | Inferred | 108.1 | 1.39 | 25.1% | 0.28 | 0.07 |
| 1.0 | Indicated | 6.3 | 1.45 | 24.8% | 0.28 | 0.08 |
| 1.0 | Measured | 4.6 | 1.59 | 24.6% | 0.31 | 0.08 |
| 1.0 | Total | 119.0 | 1.40 | 25.1% | 0.28 | 0.07 |
| 1.1 | Inferred | 87.9 | 1.47 | 25.1% | 0.29 | 0.08 |
| 1.1 | Indicated | 5.3 | 1.53 | 24.7% | 0.30 | 0.08 |
| 1.1 | Measured | 3.9 | 1.68 | 24.6% | 0.32 | 0.09 |
| 1.1 | Total | 97.1 | 1.48 | 25.0% | 0.29 | 0.08 |
| 1.2 | Inferred | 70.4 | 1.54 | 25.0% | 0.31 | 0.08 |
| 1.2 | Indicated | 4.3 | 1.62 | 24.7% | 0.31 | 0.09 |
| 1.2 | Measured | 3.3 | 1.77 | 24.6% | 0.34 | 0.09 |
| 1.2 | Total | 78.1 | 1.56 | 25.0% | 0.31 | 0.08 |
Table 1: Tardiff Upper Zone – Mineral Resource Estimate (31 December 2022) at selected cut-off grades
Key points
- Vital achieved the MRE increase due to re-interpreting the cut-off grades for the resource and including the Tardiff Zone 2 area in the resource and the inclusion of an additional 4,483 metres of drilling from the 2021 and 2022 campaigns;
- Vital selected a cut-off grade percentage of the full suite of rare earth oxides as opposed to the previous practice of using an Nd2O3 based cut-off value;
- The MRE was interpolated using Ordinary Kriging;
- 5,500 metres of drilling is planned for the 2023 field season at Nechalacho with a focus on increasing confidence in the current MRE with additional infill drilling; and
- Additional exploration drilling will be focused on assessing the potential to increase North T’s resources through extension drilling and testing other potential satellite targets.
The Tardiff MRE was compiled and is reported in accordance with the Australasian Code of Reporting of Exploration Results, Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves (the JORC 2012 edition) and Chapter 5 of the ASX Listing Rules.
